A Gardener Attacks Weeds

Updated May 26, 2004 12:01 am ET

Just about every gardener is on a search-and-destroy mission for weeds -- but knowing what's a weed and what isn't can trip some people up. Patricia Jonas, of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in New York City, surfs to the University of Minnesota's online photo collection of weed seedlings (www.extension.umn.edu) -- from the Smooth Pigweed to the Giant Foxtail. She always weeds early in the season, when the roots are weaker, and then puts down mulch in between plants to deprive late-blooming weeds of sunlight and air.